


Varsity Blues

by wowwowwubbzy



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern: No Powers, F/F, F/M, M/M, Volleyball, Volleyball Dorks in Love, Zukka week 2020
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-06
Updated: 2020-12-08
Packaged: 2021-03-08 20:34:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,496
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27412816
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wowwowwubbzy/pseuds/wowwowwubbzy
Summary: Modern Avatar: The Last Airbender Volleyball AU (Zukka focused)Written in collaboration with artist @ollisuu on Instagram and based on her art
Relationships: Aang/Katara (Avatar), Mai/Ty Lee (Avatar), Sokka/Zuko (Avatar)
Comments: 11
Kudos: 172





	1. No Pain, No Game

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! Thank you so much for reading.  
> If you stumbled upon this and haven't already, please check out @ollisuu on instagram and show her some love!  
> This fic is based off of her art and she'll be posting art that aligns with the story!  
> Zukka nation let me hear you!

“KATARAAAA” Sokka yells at the top of his lungs the second he walks through the door, simultaneously tossing his book bag onto the cluttered kitchen table Gran Gran had been asking him to clear all summer. 

‘WHAT?” Katara screams in reply, equally as loud, but significantly more shrill.

“WHAT’S FOR SUPPER?!” 

His sister stomps down the stairs in her pyjamas with her hair wrapped in a towel as Sokka rummages through the fridge for leftovers from that night’s dinner. Two containers in each hand and one in his mouth, he manages to shut the door with his hip and lay out the food on the counter before Katara shakes her head and opens the fridge again, emerging with a plate full of food.

“When have I ever forgotten to make you a plate? You really need to start looking at the top shelf first.” She says as she goes to heat up the meal in the microwave.

“And that is exactly why I defend you whenever someone says you’re stuck up!” Her brother replies in lieu of a thank you while haphazardly attempting to put the containers back in the fridge.

“Gee thanks, Sokka.” Katara rolls her eyes as the microwave beeps. Sokka opens the door, grabs the plate and some silverware, and heads straight for the couch. “Hey how was your first practice?” His sister asks, standing in the doorway between the living room and kitchen. 

Mid bite, Sokka hesitates to answer. He wasn’t looking forward to telling his sister that the boys’ varsity volleyball team wouldn’t be allowed to play since they didn’t have a coach. 

“Well Coach Paku retired at the end of last year and none of the other teachers volunteered to take his place, so it looks like we might not get to play.” He says nonchalantly, hoping Katara won’t overreact. 

“What? What do you mean you might not get to play? The boys varsity team is the best sports team in the whole school!” Katara shrieks.  _ Too late. _

“Shh you’re gonna wake the whole neighborhood.” Sokka flinches at his sister’s reaction, but pretends to be indifferent as he changes the channel on the TV to Netflix.

“There has to be someone willing to coach! Why can’t Paku do it? Just because he retired from teaching doesn’t mean he can’t still coach!” Katara continues on, enraged because Paku has caused her nothing but grief. He used to manage the local pool and refused to let her coach until she threatened to take his ass to court, and now she’s probably the best lifeguard/instructor they have. Not to mention the whole arranged marriage to Gran Gran thing...Sokka still shudders when he thinks about it.

“Katara it’s fine.” He says dismissively as he finishes his leftover stewed sea prunes and takes his dishes to the kitchen.

“No, Sokka it’s not fine! This is what you’ve been looking forward to all summer, plus you’re finally team captain! Why are you giving up so easily?” She shouts.

Katara is not like her brother. Where she is full of hope and determination to make the world a better place, Sokka has become cynical after everything life has thrown his way. Of course they both have to deal with an absent military father and their mother dying young, but it’s hard to stay positive after your first girlfriend dies of cancer on top of all that. As of late, Sokka has come to terms with the fact that life isn’t fair no matter how much his sister preaches about ‘having to take matters into your own hands sometimes’.

“Because with Caldera High in our region this year, we don’t stand a chance.” He says finally, dropping his plate into the sink with a loud clang. Katara doesn’t seem to notice how much he doesn’t want to talk about this because she keeps going.

“So you’re not even gonna try? I’m disappointed in you Sokka. You’re giving up because winning the regional championship isn’t guaranteed? Listen to yourself! It’s your senior year, you’ve been whining about it being too easy since you were a sophomore and now you’re giving up because of some rumours that might not even be true.”

“Well when you put it that way!” Sokka throws up his hands exasperated, then softens as he looks over to see Katara’s unimpressed expression. “I’ve asked every teacher I could think of and they all said no...I don’t know what other options we have.” He sighs and shakes his head, pressing his hands against the table, letting it hold his weight.  _ Why is she being so adamant about this?  _ He thinks as he represses the urge to tell her to just drop it.

“Ugh this would be so much easier if Dad were here. Even Bato would do it.” Katara mutters. 

As Sokka looks over at his little sister, the person willing to help him with anything he needs at the drop of a hat, he realizes he’s being ungrateful. Katara is the hardest working person he knows, who also happens to be the most caring, and he’s pushing her away for trying to help him. She’s so much like their mother it hurts; he doesn’t know whose face he really sees when he thinks of Kya.  _ Why did she have to grow up so fast? _ Katara has lived a thousand lifetimes in 16 years and still manages to not let reality get the better of her; Sokka would give his left leg to figure out how she does it. Then, as he stands there staring at the girl who would someday destroy the patriarchy, it dawns on him. How he missed it before is beyond him, but Sokka finally stumbles upon the answer he’s been looking for. Unfortunately for him, it’s just not feasible.

“How could I be so blind? I know who can coach the team!” Sokka exclaims with fake excitement.

“Who?!” Katara smiles, and claps her hands together.

“Gran Gran! Thanks Katara you’re the best, forget what I said about being too bossy.” Sokka pats his sister on the back and heads back to the couch, trying not to feel guilty.

“You never said anything about-” Katara scowls, but ignores her brother’s throwaway comment, knowing he’s just teasing. She follows him into the living room and sits on the armrest of the couch Sokka’s sitting on. “Gran Gran can’t coach a team of teenage boys high on adrenaline and testosterone! I think her heart would give out” The siblings laugh at the thought of their grandmother wearing sweatbands and blowing the whistle so hard she faints. As the laughter dies down, Sokka can see an idea pop into Katara’s head and he braces himself. “Now that you mention it, we do have the next best thing to Gran Gran.” She says slyly. 

“Who?” Sokka frowns, knowing she’s come to the same conclusion he did, but doesn’t take his eyes away from the TV screen in hopes that he’s wrong.

“Me!” His sister exclaims, probably excited to have a reason to boss people around. He knows she’s the best person for the job, especially with her experience as a swim coach, but the idea of her, someone who knows nothing about volleyball and who also happens to be his little sister, being in charge of his friends just doesn’t sit right with Sokka. The only reason they respected Paku was because he was an asshole and made them run line drills if they were even slightly distracted; how would they react to having to answer to another student-and a female one at that?

“Good one Katara.” He laughs, dismissing the idea completely and pretends to consider other options. “What about Master Piando? Maybe he’d be willing to volunteer and come coach when he doesn’t have students! Or maybe Master Jeong Jeong! He used to teach at Caldera didn’t he? I bet he knows all their secrets.”

“I’m serious Sokka! I already work as a swim coach so I have experience and I have a spare 3rd period so I’ll just do my homework then instead of after school.” Katara always was better at arguing than him, and now the guilt about not supporting his sister is starting to eat Sokka alive.  _ If I can’t stop her, then maybe someone else can? That way it’s not on me. _ He reasons, trying to reassure himself that this is for her own good.

“I don’t know...Would they even allow another student to coach?”

“Well it’s a good thing the principal loves us. Do you think Mr. Arnook would be willing to pull a few strings? I mean didn’t he used to play on the team? Maybe there’s some sentimental attachment that we could play off of…” Katara wonders aloud as Sokka worries that she’s too attached to the idea of coaching and is going to be extremely disappointed when it doesn’t work out.

“I don’t know if I feel comfortable emotionally manipulating Yue’s dad like that. Hasn’t he been through enough?” Sokka rubs his neck, thinking of other ways to turn Katara off of the idea. _I’m just trying to protect her._ _Right?_

“Well we haven’t even asked yet so we don’t know what his answer will be regardless if we just happen to bring up past emotional affairs. I’m going to go type up a proposal and hand it in to the office first thing tomorrow!” His sister says finally and runs upstairs to start working before he can object. Letting out a long sigh, Sokka leans forward so that his elbows rests on his knees and rubs his temples. 

_ Guess I’m gonna have to get used to calling my little sister Coach Katara. I should’ve known it’s useless to try to deter her from something once she has her mind set on it, but I’m still going to have her back no matter what. If one of those idiots even looks at her the wrong way he’s going to be sorry.  _


	2. Don't Sweat the Small Stuff

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading, I'm really glad you're here!  
> Sorry for the hiatus! I had a run in with my old nemesis, writer's block.  
> Thank you so much for all of your support and kind words! I am honestly overwhelmed at the positive feedback. You guys inspire me to keep writing.   
> Enough talk, here is chapter two:

Zuko sits on the bench at the edge of the court, tying his sneakers when he feels more weight fall onto the other side.

“You’re early.” A familiar voice says nonchalantly. 

“I’m not in the mood, Azula.” He grumbles, trying to stay focused on practice and not his sister.

“Relax, I’m not here to tease you, just going to sit in the bleachers and do some homework. You won’t even know I’m here.” Azula muses, as her eyes drift to the far side of the gym where the cheerleaders are doing their warmups. Zuko follows her gaze, which lands on Ty Lee, and finally understands why his sister is at the gym even when the senior girls have a day off.

“Anyway,” she says, breaking her own trance, “Dad said if you don’t earn the title of captain he’s going to pull you from the team.” Zuko drops his other shoe and stands to face his sister, who is cleaning the dirt from under her nails.

“What?”  
“Keep your voice down, Zuzu people are starting to stare.” Azula glances upwards at her older brother and smirks, knowing she has him right where she wants him. “Don’t worry your pretty little head, with Uncle as the head coach I’m sure you’ll have no problem becoming captain.” She gathers her things and makes her way up the bleachers, sneaking a subtle wave at Ty Lee when she sits down. 

Still stunned, Zuko almost doesn’t hear when assistant coach Mr. Zhao blows his whistle and calls for the boys to line up. He shoves his foot into his shoe and sprints to fall into line, but trips on his untied shoelace and stumbles into the back of another player. Without making eye contact, Zuko mumbles an apology and makes his way to the end of the line. Bending down to finish tying his shoe, he doesn’t see when the head coach enters the gymnasium and once he rises, Zuko is face to face with his uncle, Iroh. 

“Zuko.”

“Coach Iroh,” he pauses before adding “Sir.” To Zuko’s surprise, his elder breaks into a wide grin.

“Captain, lead your team in a warm up.”

  
  


~

  
  


“Well Katara, congratulations you managed to become coach of the Caldera High senior boys’ varsity volleyball team.” Sokka says as he watches his teammates warm up on the court before practice. His sister is sitting on the bench, surrounded by volleyball rulebooks, lineups, charts, and strategies. She takes the pen out of her mouth just briefly enough to scribble something on a sticky note and correct her brother.

“It’s  _ coach _ Katara.” But before Sokka can make a witty comeback, someone shouts at his sister from across the gymnasium.

“Hey Katara! Watch this!” Both siblings look in the direction of the voice and see Aang, Katara’s boyfriend and libero of the team, holding a volleyball. He tosses it up in the air and uses his head to bump it instead of his hands, imitating a seal. Katara laughs at the sight and Aang grins sheepishly, letting the ball fall to the ground. Obviously distracted, Aang doesn’t hear someone call ‘watch out!’ and definitely doesn’t see the volleyball heading straight for his face. Luckily, Aang claims that his shaved head (saved for an arrow shape that he dyes blue) gives him hypersensitivity to wind and he is able to duck just in time. The ball misses the libero and hits the net instead, bouncing off lightly and Aang runs to catch  it before it rolls away. Katara checks her watch and blows her whistle, signalling that practice is starting. 

  
  


~

  
  


“Captain Zuko, I’m impressed with your performance today. Go ahead and take the night off from work.” Iroh approaches Zuko as he finishes folding the practice nets to put them away. 

“Are you sure Uncle-I mean Coach?” Zuko stutters, unsure how to address Iroh. Usually he would call him Professor, but his uncle has been retired as headmaster of Caldera since the tragic passing of his son, Lu-Ten five years ago.

“Just stick with Uncle.” Iroh chuckles and takes the nets from Zuko’s arms. “Yes I’m sure, you worked very hard today and you deserve it. Just don’t tell your father that I’m going easy on you.” He says with a wink.

“Thanks Uncle.” Zuko bows to his elder and opens the door to the equipment room for him.

“Now go shower, you stink!” The old man orders and Zuko scrambles to the dressing room, stopping to get a drink at the water fountain. He’s about to head to the showers when the sound of footsteps and a familiar voice grow near, prompting Zuko to duck into the alcove to listen.

  
  


~

  
  
  


“Great practice, Sweetie!” Aang sits down on the bench beside Katara as she blows her whistle, still full of energy despite his girlfriend and new coach’s ruthless practice drills. The rest of the team is bent over, trying to catch their breath 

“Thanks Aang, I hope I did okay.”

“I gotta hand it to you Katara, I haven’t seen the boys this drenched since Hahn’s pool party last summer.” Sokka laughs and holds his water bottle at arm’s length, squeezing the water into his mouth. 

“Go shower and get changed, we’re meeting Suki and Toph at the Jasmine Dragon in twenty minutes.” His sister says as she stands up and begins packing her things into her school bag.

“Awe c’mon Katara, you don’t like how good we smell? Come here so I can give you a big hug!” Sokka wraps his arms around Katara, who doesn’t see him coming.

“Ew Sokka, you smell like a middle schooler who hasn’t discovered axe body spray.” She laughs as she tries to push her brother away.

On the way to the tea shop Sokka has to sit in the third row of the SUV.

  
  
  


~

  
  
  


iMessage to Mai

Zuko: wyd

Mai: the usual

Zuko: sitting around and brooding?

Mai: my fav hobby

Zuko: down for boba?

Mai: i guess

Zuko: dont get too excited

Mai: meet there @ 7

  
  


~

  
  


iMessage to Sokka

Suki: OMG

Sokka: ?

Suki: those goth kids from caldera are here

Sokka: you’re gonna have to be more specific

Suki: they’re looking at me weird 

Sokka: wink at them

Suki: w h a t

Sokka: they’re either gonna stop looking at you or buy you a drink, either way it’s a win

Suki: I can’t they’re both hot

Sokka: just bi tingz

Suki: hurry up pls

  
  


~

  
  


“Is this seat taken?” Mai’s attempt at a joke brings Zuko out of his own thoughts and back into the real world, very confused.

“No, why would it be taken? I said I was meeting you here.” 

“Never mind, how was practice?” Mai sighs as she sits down across from him. 

“I don’t know, fine I guess.”

“Oh.” Zuko notices she’s still in her school uniform, which means she had something after school today.

“How was knife throwing?” He guesses, trying to remember if Mai has other extracurricular activities.  _ Does she still take piano lessons? _

“Fine.” Mai raises an eyebrow, seemingly impressed that he remembered such a small detail. Zuko has been working on trying to pick up cues like that as a way to ground himself, and the fact that she noticed means he’s getting better.

“That’s good.”

“I guess...I thought you were supposed to work today.”

“I was, but Uncle gave me the night off for some reason.”  _ And yet I still came here anyway. _

“Isn’t it kind of weird how you work for uncle but he’s also your coach.” It’s meant to be a harmless observation, but in light of recent events Zuko’s anxiety gets the best of him.

“How would that be weird?” He eyes Mai, defensively.  _ Does she know something I don’t? _

“I don’t know, don’t you ever get sick of him?” Still unaware of the affect her passing comment had on, Mai takes out her phone to check her notifications.

“No, why would you say that?” He snaps, forgetting where he is and who he’s talking to.  _ Does he get sick of me? _

“I’m just trying to make conversation, God did you uniform get stuck up your ass or something?” Mai tosses her phone down onto the table and throws her hands in the air as a sign of surrender. Coming to his senses, Zuko closes his eyes and tries to mindfully release the tension in his body; if he could stand people touching him he might consider going to the chiropractor. After a few deep breaths, Zuko opens his eyes and apologizes to his friend.

“Sorry, I’m just stressed.”

“No kidding.” Mai says, smirking. Zuko wonders if she’s proud of him for using his coping techniques.

“I wonder who’s working today.”

  
  
  


~

  
  
  


“Did you win?” Toph asks as she feels Aang, Katara, and Sokka slide into the booth that Suki saved for them. Badger, Toph’s service dog, lays at her feet, sleeping. Hearing the kids come in, his ears perk up and he opens one eye, but closes it again when he recognizes who it is.

“It wasn’t a game Toph, just a practice.” Aang explains.

“But did you win?”

“How could we have won if we weren’t playing anyone?” Sokka asks, picking up the laminated menu on the table and pretending to look it over, even though he orders the same thing every time they come. 

“Well at wrestling practice you can win, and I always win.” Toph brags and flexes her arms for dramatic effect.

“Toph, there’s only one other girl in your weight class and she refuses to spar you.” Suki retorts from beside her.

“That’s ‘cause the coaches are pussies and won’t let me take on the heavy weight boys.” The young girl slams her fists on the table, causing other customers to give them weird looks. Toph, of course, doesn't notice.

“Because it’s dangerous.” Katara scolds, snatching the menu out of her brother’s hands.

“Yeah for the guys.” Sokka mutters, who receives a swift punch in the arm from across the table, courtesy of Toph. 

  
  


~

  
  
  


“What?” Mai says monotonously, breaking the silence. Zuko looks up from the laminate menu he’s been staring at for the past five minutes, pretending to look it over as if he hasn’t memorized every item. 

“What?” Zuko furrows his brow and sets the menu down, avoiding eye contact.

“What’s wrong?.”

“Nothing!”

“Zuko.” Mai’s voice softens. Ever since they broke up, the two have grown closer and now understand each other on a deeper level.

“Ugh, fine.” Zuko leans in towards the centre of the table and lowers his voice, “When I was cleaning up after practice I overheard Zhao tell one of the assistant coaches that he’s paid off the refs to favour Caldera.” This is what has been on his mind since practice, gnawing at him and causing his thoughts to spiral, and yet Mai seems unimpressed.

“They do that every year. Why do you think we had to move regions?”

“I’m sick of cheating. Why doesn’t my dad have faith that we could win without rigging the entire thing?” Zuko asks, even though deep down he knows the answer. 

“Because faith isn’t a guarantee. Your dad has stakeholders in his company whose kids go to Caldera. Do you really think they’d send them there if it wasn’t the top private school in the country? I highly doubt it. That’s literally the only reason I go there, my parents would ship me off somewhere else if it looked better on a university application.” Mai states bitterly. Caldera wasn’t exactly her top choice of high schools, but it wasn’t her decision to make. Zuko knows she probably won’t get to choose if or where she goes to university either.

“Wait, why does Ty Lee go there? She ran away from home to join the circus and now she’s going to a private boarding school, it doesn’t make sense.” Zuko doesn’t know much about his sister’s ‘friend’ but he can guess there’s more to Ty Lee than she lets on.

“Her parents sent Azula to track her down and convince her to come home. Azula knew she didn’t want to live with her family so she pulled some strings and claimed Ty Lee got in on a cheerleading scholarship.” Mai says it so quietly Zuko can hardly hear it over the cheesy instrumental zen music Uncle plays, but he does hear it and he reads between the lines.

“I didn’t know that.” Zuko blanches: he hadn’t realized how much Ty Lee means to Azula,  _ or to Mai. _

“Well you didn’t hear it from me.” Mai suddenly becomes very interested in her chipped nailpolish and Zuko can tell she feels embarrassed, although she’d never admit it. There’s a long pause, as neither of them know what to say. The conversation went in a direction Zuko hadn’t anticipated, which usually means it’s time to steer it back towards something he’s familiar with.

“What should I do about Zhao?”

“Talk to your uncle, he probably doesn’t know. Once he finds out he’ll flip his shit and Zhao will be fired.” Mai offers, shrugging.

“What if Uncle does know?” Zuko’s mind begins spiralling, going over every possible scenario until Mai’s scoff snaps him out of it.

“God, Zuko I can’t solve all your problems for you. If you’re gonna overthink, keep it to yourself.” She rolls her eyes and crosses her arms while she says it, but Zuko knows this is her way of supporting him and he appreciates it.

“Let’s order.”

  
  
  


~

  
  
  


“What are you looking at Sokka?” Aang asks, practically hanging off of the older boy’s shoulder in an attempt to see the paper he’s holding.

“Our game schedule for the next few weeks. I’m really worried about playing Caldera. What if they beat us out before we make it to the playoffs?” 

“I heard that if you can’t overhand serve you’re kicked off the team.” Aang offers, doing little to ease Sokka’s worries.

“Someone told me they had to move regions because they got exposed for paying off the refs.” Suki says, taking a sip of her lemon ginger tea.

“Well I heard they have some mean cream of onion soup at the cafeteria.” Toph pipes up from the corner.

“What does that have to do with volleyball, Toph?” Aang asks, puzzled.

“Nothing, but it’s the only rumor I’ve heard.” The girl shrugs and the others groan at her.

“We have a match against Caldera High tomorrow, I’ll let you know if I notice anything strange.” Suki tells Sokka, who is still trying to figure out how soup can be mean.

“You should bring me back a to-go cup of soup.”

“Toph.” Suki gives her a look, but it’s not like she can tell.

“Yeah you’re right, I can get it myself: you’re my ride home!” Toph beams.

“Gee thanks.” The other girl smirks and raises an eyebrow, amused. Suki practically adopted Toph as her sister despite her protests when she found out about her home life; now she couldn't get rid of her if she tried.

“Katara are you okay? You’ve hardly touched your bubble tea.” Aang puts a hand on Katara’s arm, concerned for his girlfriend who has been staring at the table for the entire conversion. She looks up into the distance dramatically and the entire cafe seems to go silent as she speaks:

“Caldera High killed my mother.” A single tear rolls down her cheek before she closes her eyes and turns away.

“I thought your mom died in a car accident.” Suki whispers to Sokka, lost. 

“She did, I’m just trying to justify why I have such a strong hatred towards Caldera already.” Katara perks up and wipes her eyes, careful not to smudge her mascara as Toph shakes her head and scoffs. 

“Theatre kids.”

“I’ve never even met any of the students there! I should have an open mind, but for some reason I already have a vendetta against the entire school.” Katara thinks aloud in a dramatic mood change. 

“Chalk it up to healthy competition?” Suki offers, still not entirely sure what happened to Kya.

“There is nothing healthy about Katara’s competitiveness.” Sokka objects, crossing his arms.

“Hey! I am not a sore loser.” 

“Sweetie, you threatened to break up with me if I beat you in Smash Bros.” Aang says sheepishly.

“Only for a day! Whatever, I just want to focus on our game against Ba Sing Se Collegiate next week.” Katara’s face goes red as she slides the paper schedule across the table towards herself to look it over.

“Maybe your competitive nature will come in handy!” Aang smiles, trying to put a positive spin on things. Sokka can tell he feels bad for having brought up his and Katara’s video game feud. She seems to forgive him though, proving it with a kiss on the cheek that makes Aang blush so red even toph can sense it.

“Let’s hope so.” Sokka sighs, wondering if it’s too late to give up volleyball and join Gran Gran’s knitting circle.


End file.
